The Incident
by Sinkme
Summary: Mentioned in Rebirth: The Tale of the Sarmatian Knights, this is what happens when the knights go on one of their first missions. Galahad is sent to scout and ends up getting captured and only Tristan can help.


Ok, so this is the 'incident' mentioned by Tristan during Chapter 4 of Rebirth. I decided to write it out since I had a really good idea about it.

Basically Galahad is learning how to scout and gets captured. Tristan goes to get him, but the Saxons have other plans. It will be relatively short and not slash.

Flashbacks are in italics, as are thoughts

**Read this, it is important to the plot:**

This is the knights' fifth month of service (so they aren't that familiar with each other) and for my own purposes, the knights have split into groups. The core from the movie: Tristan, Galahad, Gawain, Bors, Dagonet, and Lancelot, are one group. Arthur takes each group out on missions to build their skills and teamwork. This piece is centered on that group being taken out to determine the position of a Saxon party and if possible, to eliminate them.

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"Why does it have to be me?" Galahad whined for the fourth time in as many minutes. Arthur turned to him and said firmly, "Galahad, this is not punishment. This is something that needs to be done and I think you will be perfect as a backup scout. If something should happen to Tristan, we will need someone who can scout. It would be too great of a weakness to only have one scout."

Galahad looked at Arthur, he hadn't considered the possibility that he was being asked to do this because it mattered.

From the moment he had begun training to be a knight he had known he was weaker than the other boys. His tribe hadn't taught him anything; they thought he had two more years until the Romans came for him. They were wrong, and Galahad was unprepared for life as a knight.

(Flashback of the first three of months in training for Galahad)

_Gawain had taken to looking after him, something that was both infuriating and relieving to Galahad. He knew that having someone watch over him cemented the fact that he couldn't fight, but it also reassured him that someone cared whether or not he lived or died. The other knights had taken to calling him 'pup' since he was one of the youngest and also had the least amount of fighting skills. _

_He had immediately disliked Tristan. From the moment he saw Tristan's skill with both a sword and a bow, he was jealous. Tristan was quiet and distant, and Galahad was too embarrassed to ask the boy to teach him. Galahad had muddled along until Gawain and Dagonet had helped him learn enough to work on his own. He trained constantly, but he never seemed to make any progress. _

_He had noticed Tristan at the archery range and walked over to watch, hoping to copy what the silent boy was doing. Before he had even come within arms reach of him, though, Tristan whirled around and looked at him. _

"_Come one, I don't have all day" Galahad just stared at him. Tristan had never said more than a word to him at one time. The boy made a sound of impatience and dragged Galahad and the bow he was carrying over to a spot on the range. _

_Galahad remembered that he was supposed to be learning, and took his stance with his bow. Tristan said nothing; he might have smiled, but Galahad couldn't see with his hair blocking his face. He wordlessly fixed Galahad's stance and motioned with his hand as if to say, 'try it now.' Galahad drew an arrow back, surprised at how easy it had become. Tristan's hand guided his as he drew it back straight past his ear and then let go. _

_It missed the target completely, but it flew hard and landed solidly in the ground. Galahad just looked at the arrow in shock and turned to Tristan. This time he did see the smile that danced around the corners of Tristan's mouth._

_The boys spent the rest of the day practicing until Galahad could fire an arrow straight on his own. He still needed to work on his accuracy, but that would come with time. When he turned to thank Tristan, he saw that the boy had already vanished. He shrugged and packed his bow and arrows together and went to find the boys for dinner. _

Galahad snapped back to the present and looked at his commander. "I'll do my best" he said, and then led his horse through the woods alone.

Arthur returned to the camp, happy that Galahad had accepted his request. He knew Tristan wasn't hurt enough to really keep him from scouting, but he had worried about only having one scout in this group and had taken advantage of it.

He sat down at the campfire next to his knights. Lancelot looked over at him and said, "This mission has become more complicated than we bargained for."

The other knights nodded, but said nothing. They all knew that this was supposed to be a simple mission, but they rarely turned out to be so straightforward. Their mission had been to scout a band of Saxons that were hiding in the woods and kill them. The Woads, however, had not taken kindly to their presence and had launched a surprise attack on them.

Arthur shuddered to think what would have happened if Tristan hadn't alerted them to the Woads' attack. They had managed to kill all of the Woads, but Tristan had been sliced on the arm for his efforts. Dagonet had bandaged him up and he would be fine.

Tristan was the only one not sitting by the fire. He sat at the base of a tree a little bit away, with his sword and bow nearby. He was closest to Arthur, who had turned around to look at the injured scout. "He's not ready" Tristan said, loud enough for Arthur to hear, but softly enough that no one else did.

Arthur knew immediately that he was referring to Galahad, and Arthur was inclined to agree. But he had only told Galahad to scout the Saxon's position and confirm the number of men they had. Arthur thought that Galahad could handle it and it would boost his confidence.

The knights waited for Galahad, but he didn't return. Arthur and Tristan stayed up all night waiting to see his face, but he never came back.

When the knights woke they knew something was wrong. Arthur had his grim face on. They discussed what they should do to find Galahad. Bors and Lancelot agreed that an attack on the Saxon camp was the best, while Dagonet and Gawain wanted to wait for Galahad and search the nearby woods for him. Tristan had been silent the whole time; he knew Arthur would look at him eventually.

Arthur knew that Tristan was staring at him; he was clearly waiting for Arthur to look at him and acknowledge his plan. Arthur turned to look at him and said loudly, "No. Tristan, I can't let you." The other knights looked confused until they looked at Tristan's face and saw the determination in his eyes.

They all protested violently- "You're injured," "There's a better way," "You can't go alone." Tristan looked at them and they all fell silent. "It is the best way. All of us would attract attention. I can get him out faster."

The knights fell silent at this. None of them had any doubts anymore that Galahad had been captured. They knew that Tristan was right; it would be easier and more efficient to send Tristan alone.

Tristan nodded to Arthur and walked over to his horse, then led him through the woods, following Galahad's trail.

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_I can't believe how stupid I was. _He was tied up on the floor in the Saxon camp. They had momentarily forgotten about him, but he knew that he couldn't escape.

Galahad thought he had been doing everything right when he was scouting the Saxons. He found their camp easily. _Too easily _he thought now. They had seemed oblivious as he counted their numbers and turned to leave. Then he heard a twig snap behind him. He felt something crack against his head and sank into darkness.

He knew it was only a matter of time before the other knights came for him, but he didn't know what the Saxons would do before that. He resisted the urge to squirm and tried to look around to see where he was.

He turned to the right as a large foot planted itself in his field of vision. Resisting the urge to curse, he looked up to the Saxon standing in front of him.

"Let's talk" he said with an evil glint in his eyes as he pulled a knife out.

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Tristan had a ridiculously easy time picking up Galahad's trail. _Did he stomp through here with the entire Roman army?_ He looked around, trying to see where the Saxons had come from when they had captured him. When he had searched the whole area, he took his horse back a bit and tethered him to a tree, loosely enough that he could escape if he was threatened, but firmly enough to make sure the horse didn't wander.

He returned to the area with his dagger out, alert for any Saxons that could still be in the vicinity. He scouted the entire perimeter of the Saxon camp, noticing that Galahad hadn't. _Foolish pup, but I can't blame him. He wasn't ready for this at all. _

Tristan finally saw Galahad at the edge of the camp and then noticed that a rather large man was crouched down next to him with a knife. He saw Galahad's panicked expression and Tristan threw his dagger at the man.

The Saxon fell on top of Galahad, but he had enough sense not to cry out. Tristan crept silently over to Galahad and pushed the man off of him. He recovered his dagger from the body and cut the ropes that bound Galahad. By that time, however, the other Saxons had been alerted that their prisoner was escaping and one of their men was dead. Galahad was standing in front of Tristan and facing him, unaware of the approaching Saxons and surprised that Tristan had come.

Tristan saw an archer come out of the woods and raise his bow firing an arrow directly at Galahad. Tristan reacted without thinking. He shoved Galahad down and the arrow sailed over the boy's hair to land with sickening thud in his own chest.

Galahad looked up in horror as realization dawned on him. _That would have killed me if Tristan hadn't pushed me down. Now he's hurt and it's my fault. _

Tristan gritted his teeth against the pain and pulled the arrow out with a grunt that he struggled to bite back.

The Saxons were impressed despite themselves, but soon renewed their attack on the two teens.

Tristan pulled Galahad up and pushed him in front of him as they began to run. Tristan scooped down to pick up his dagger as he ran into the woods and passed it to Galahad. Tristan took out his curved sword and began to navigate them through the woods. He unclipped his sword and scabbard and handed it to Galahad.

"Galahad, you need to get back to Arthur. You can lead him to the Saxon's camp. Follow this trail and get my horse, then go back to camp and tell Arthur that there are nineteen men at the camp. Their scouts have been dealt with" Tristan bit out, his eyes screwed tight against the pain in his chest.

Galahad turned to look at Tristan, "What do you mean, I need to get back. You need to get back too. You're injured." Tristan just shook his head, "I'll only slow you down."

He suddenly pushed Galahad down into the bush as he heard Saxons approaching. He waited long enough for them to see him, and then ran the opposite direction of Galahad, leading them away from him.

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Galahad lay there, furious that Tristan had done that. _What gives him the right to sacrifice himself for me? Why am I so weak?_

He stood after a moment and ran down the path, retrieving Tristan's horse and going back to camp.

The knights looked up when Galahad walked into their camp, their faces quickly crossing from happy to confused to sad. They knew that if Tristan didn't come back something had happened.

"Galahad, report" Arthur said, looking over Galahad to make sure he wasn't injured.

"I was captured by the Saxons while scouting their position. They tied me up and left me to myself for the night, but were about to question me when Tristan killed the Saxon guard. He came over and untied me, and then he pushed me out of the way-" Galahad broke off, refusing to meet the eyes of his fellow knights.

"What happened, Galahad? No one blames you" Dagonet spoke calmly and Galahad looked up at him and nodded.

"Tristan pushed me out of the way and took the arrow that was meant for me. If it had hit me I would have been dead" the other knights looked surprised at this. They hadn't really pegged Tristan as the self-sacrificing type. They knew he was a good knight, but he rarely spoke and stayed to himself, so they hadn't really gotten to know him that well. They began to feel guilty as Galahad finished his report.

"We ran through the woods, where he told me I was to come back to camp and tell you that there were nineteen Saxons left. Tristan took care of their scouts earlier. Then he ran in the opposite direction and led them away from me and the camp."

Lancelot looked pensive, which was hard for him. He spoke up after a minute, "We need to go after him. Now. No more waiting, Arthur. It's time for action."

Arthur looked to each knight and saw the determination in their eyes. He nodded and said, "Then let's go."

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_That's probably enough time. _Tristan thought as he slowed down. He had been leading the Saxons through the woods, always keeping just out of reach. _Galahad will have found the camp by now. Besides, I can't move anymore. I've lost too much blood. _

He looked down at the wound in his chest, which had bled sluggishly ever since he had pulled the arrow out. He knew that he couldn't climb a tree to evade them, and in any event, he needed them to capture him and bring him back to the camp. That's where Galahad would lead the others. He took advantage of his time and fashioned a bandage around the wound to at least slow the bleeding.

He heard the Saxons approaching and kneeled down on one leg, appearing to be out of breath and overcome with pain from his wound. The Saxons saw him and smirked. They quickly caught up to him and one of them kicked him solidly in the back. Tristan fell over and the Saxons laughed. They tied his hands behind his back, ignoring the obvious pain it caused him, and dragged him back to their camp.

Tristan knew they would rough him up once they got back to camp, but he didn't plan on their anger over their dead comrade and the fact that Galahad escaped. They walked into their camp and threw him into the center of the camp. The other Saxons came out of their tents to join in and they formed a circle around the teen.

_Well shit, _was Tristan's only thought as the circle closed in on him.

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Galahad led the rest of the knights to the Saxon's camp, making sure to keep an eye out for any scouts that the Saxons might have posted. He was surprised when he didn't see signs of anyone. He turned around to Arthur and said, "The camp is right ahead." Arthur nodded and signaled to the other knights. They spread out to cover more of the camp area.

Arthur paused when he heard a yelp from the camp. He looked around the tree to see the camp and was surprised to see all of the Saxons in a circle. It only took him a second to determine what was going on and who was in the center of the circle.

He turned back to his knights and said, "We need to hurry. Tristan might not last much longer."

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Tristan was in a lot of pain. Besides the wound from the arrow, he knew he had cracked at least one rib and would be covered in bruises for a while. The Saxons were brutal. While the rest were in a circle around him, occasionally kicking him back in to the center, there were three Saxons in the center with him. They took turns kicking and punching him until one of them pulled out a knife.

Tristan hadn't screamed out the whole time, but he was reaching his limit. He was having trouble breathing and he knew he wouldn't last much longer.

The Saxon with the knife walked towards him slowly, but Tristan was in too much pain to even blink. He simply watched him walk towards him with calm eyes. He knew there was nothing he could do.

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The knights looked on in horror as Tristan was beat and then they saw one of the Saxons draw a knife out. They snapped out of the shock and charged in as one.

Tristan looked up as he heard the knights yell their battles cries and come running out of the woods. They took out most of the Saxons in the circle before they could draw their weapons. As they were each drawn into separate battles, the Saxon with the knife lunged at Tristan, desperate to kill him.

Tristan saw him lunge towards him and rotated his body at the last minute, so the knife plunged into his arm rather than his chest. His arm erupted in fire, although it was less painful than when he had been shot with the arrow.

The Saxon's smirk turned to annoyance when he saw that his attack had missed anything vital. He roughly pulled the knife out of Tristan's arm and dragged the boy to a standing position, pressing the knife against his throat.

By then, the knights had finished with their duels, all of them emerging victorious. They looked at the last Saxon warily, wondering how to get Tristan away safely. Tristan saw Galahad pull his bow out hesitantly as he backed into the shadow of the woods. Tristan caught his eye and nodded silently, telling Galahad he had faith in him.

Tristan looked to Arthur, who stayed where he was, unwilling to give the Saxon a reason to kill Tristan. No one besides Tristan had noticed that Galahad had disappeared into the woods until the _twang_ of an arrow was heard.

Everyone turned to look in the direction it was fired from, and then they looked back to the Saxon. The arrow had gone straight through his neck. He fell over with a gurgle, and Tristan swayed on his feet before falling forward, too exhausted to remain conscious any longer.

Galahad ran from his place in the woods to check on Tristan as Dagonet and Arthur rushed forward to catch him.

The knights looked at Dagonet, who was examining the bloody wounds on Tristan's chest and arm. He tore off his tunic and ripped it up, binding the wounds to slow the bleeding.

"I can't be sure, Arthur. We need to get him back to the Wall" Dagonet said, looking up at Arthur and the other knights.

The knights rode for the rest of the day until they came back to Hadrian's Wall, where they brought Tristan to the healer, a young woman named Vanora. Galahad stayed to make sure Tristan would be all right, and then went to the stables to find another horse to replace the one that had been killed when he was captured.

He went to visit Tristan when he noticed it was dark out and saw that the scout was awake. He sat down next to the bed Tristan was in and said, "Why?"

That was it, that one question summed up everything that Galahad wanted to know. He couldn't understand why the silent boy who had never seemed to care about any of them had sacrificed his life to save him.

Tristan looked up at Galahad; he knew he would have to explain himself to the younger knight, so he tried his best. He hesitated, trying to find the right words, "All of you are the closest to a family I've ever had. That's why I scout. I do my best to protect you all. You're like a brother to me, Galahad. I liked teaching you how to shoot an arrow. You were the first person to ask me for help. No one seemed to want to be around me, so I removed myself from everyone."

Tristan hung his head, embarrassed that he had revealed so much to Galahad. Galahad, for his part, was beyond shocked that Tristan had told him so much. Galahad clapped him lightly on his uninjured shoulder and said softly, "Thank you, Tristan."

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And that's it. Yay! My first one-shot. (stands up and dances)

Always,

Sinkme


End file.
